Pakistan News Online

18th Amendment blamed for patient deaths in Punjab

2012-01-28T23:21:00.000-08:00

* PML-Q Senator Nilofar Bakhtiar says 18th Amendment passed ‘in haste’, ‘we were forced to support it’

By Ijaz Kakakhel

ISLAMABAD: Senators on Friday expressed concern over the deaths of patients due to “contaminated” medicines in Punjab, while a member of the Upper House of parliament linked the tragedy to the passage of the 18th Amendment.

At least 100 patients have died in Punjab in the last few days after consuming the “contaminated” drugs they had received from the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC).

The government devolved the Federal Health Ministry to provinces after implementation of the 18th Amendment. This, according to experts, has rendered the Drug Regularity Authority “ineffective”.

PPP Senator Muhammad Kazim Khan raised the issue of deaths in Punjab, blaming the tragedy on “negligence” of the officials concerned. He suggested a resolution be passed and an investigation be launched to fix responsibility.

The PML-Q’s Nilofar Bakhtiar said those who had prepared the 18th Amendment were responsible for the deaths of the patients. “The 18th Amendment was passed in a haste and we were forced to approve it unanimously,” she added. She also regretted devolution of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and said a ministry on heritage had been formed in its place. Responding to Nilofar’s claims, Awami National Party (ANP) Senator Zahid Khan said the deaths in Punjab had no link to the 18th Amendment. “The Drug Regulatory Authority still exists at federal level and every province, except Punjab, has its membership,” he said.

PPP Senator Mian Raza Rabbani said that it is regrettable that some people were not ready to accept the 18th Amendment. Health was a provincial subject but the federal government had kept it with the Centre by force. He said all health-related affairs had been devolved to provinces, adding that the [18th Amendment] implementation commission thought it was appropriate to keep the Drug Regulatory Authority with the federal government “so that quality of medicines can be ensured”. During the final phase of devolution process, Rabbani said, the federal government devolved Quetta’s Sheikh Zayed Hospital and Karachi’s Jinnah Hospital but it could not devolve Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore. He said this hospital should also be devolved.

Rabbani said provinces could raise the issue of Drug Regulatory Authority in the Council of Common Interest, which in turn might ask the federal government to bring an act for the formation of such an authority.

Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain told the House after the 18th Amendment, “people have started manufacturing sub-standard medicines in villages”. He said that the Drug Regulatory Authority should function at the federal level like “rest of the world”. Senators Waseem Sajjad, Muhammad Humayun Khan Mandokhel, Abdul Rahim Khan Mandokhel and Ishaq Dar also regretted the loss of lives in Punjab. They, however, supported the 18th Amendment. Senate Chairman Farooq H Naek referred the issue of deaths in Punjab to the Cabinet Committee on Drugs, and sought a report within 10 days.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2012\01\28\story_28-1-2012_pg7_1

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Comments on Deaths in Punjab

2012-01-28T23:16:00.000-08:00

Dr. Azhar Sherkheli says:

Yesterday at 1:04 pm

The fundamental reasons for such tragedies in countries like Pakistan is professional incompetency on part of health professionals, lack of public awareness, no consumer protection laws and above all a greedy and criminal mind set of so called industrialists doing business in the pharmaceutical field . Whether the drugs are manufactured, processed, distributed or managed; the key handlers and decision makers are non professionals (non pharmacists). On the first hand there is a severe shortage of professionally competent and morally sound pharmacists and on the other hand there is surge of private sector universities in Lahore and elsewhere where pharmacy-quakes ( with the degrees of Doctors of Pharmacy) are produced. These pharmacy-quakes can manufacture only substandard and toxic drugs as they hardly know the basics of innovative, rational and effective pharmaceutical drug designing. Such people are an easy hunt for criminal mentality of greedy-industrialists who use degrees of these pharmacy-quakes to get registered with drug regulating authorities. The result is what we see in as present tragedy, a huge loss of human life.
The corrupt political elite of Pakistan does not need the health system of the country, as they go abroad even for their routine check-ups, so they think that they are immune to a variety of quakes dominating the health profession in Pakistan. Thus the responsibility of those who believe in the dignity of human life and know what it means to save a human life is many fold. The media can play a very constructive role in creating public awareness, civil society (if it exists in Pakistan!), must also play an active role in forcing the political elite to formulate and implement appropriate drug laws. The most critical part is to have enough numbers of professionally qualifies and competent pharmacists in the society at each and every level of health profession, be it a manufacturing, distributing and storing or dispensing to patients stage. Drugs must be supervised by a pharmacist as is done in any civilized society of present time. There must be a proper licensing exam for Pharmacists and medical doctors instead of only having a paper degree from degree selling colleges and universities of Pakistan. If there is no quality health system you cannot have quality health services!!! The only result will be tragedies like this one.

http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/27/bad-medicine-2.html

Adnan Qazi says:

January 27, 2012 (2 days ago) at 9:23 pm

While the enormity of this tragedy has sympathies of most Pakistani people, it seems that once again politicians are using this unfortunate event for their own gains. In doing so the Pharmaceutical companies have already been identified as the guilty parties and a number of vital issues have been sidelined:
• Why are the patients all from a specific area? Surely the five companies must have supplied their product in other regions too. It is worth keeping in mind that people in this area have recently been suffering from loss of platelets due to dengue fever. Is it possible that ordinarily this drug would have been fine but if prescribed to a patient who is already suffering from a decrease in platelets, it may have terminal effects?
• Assuming that the drug is directly responsible for this loss of life, surely the responsibility goes way beyond the manufacturer. We are informed by our ‘honourable politicians’ that the drugs have been sent to other countries for testing. If there is no facility for the medicine to be confirmed safe then whose is to determine what is safe? Surely not just the party who made it. The government has a responsibility to ensure safety before the drugs can be sold to hospitals.
• Another snippet of news relayed that there was no expiry dates on some of the medicine. If so, why was it accepted by the hospital? Why was it dispensed from the pharmacy?
• Drugs that are consumed by the patients in Pakistan are tested for ‘pre-qualification’ and then tested again before payment. This gives rise to two questions – 1. The final responsibility for safety is with the testing agency and why are they running free when the manufacturer has been arrested? 2. How valid are these tests if now we are looking to other countries for testing?
• In the absence of the testing facilities in this country and with so many other bodies of responsibility, is it right to show expedience by these quick arrests?
We all want to get to the bottom of this issue, but let us have a true review and get to the real root cause rather than expressing satisfaction with the politically convenient scapegoats’ and leaving the real issue where it has always been – under the carpet.

http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/27/bad-medicine-2.html

2012-01-28T23:12:00.001-08:00

PIC drugs scam Heads roll amid rising death toll

Mansoor Malik | Metropolitan > Lahore | From the Newspaper

(3 hours ago) Today

Shahbaz Sharif. - File Photo

LAHORE: The Punjab government on Saturday night removed the health secretary as well as senior functionaries of the Punjab Institute of Cardiology and decided to request the Lahore High Court to constitute a judicial inquiry into the deaths of heart patients. The death toll has risen to 109.
At a meeting called to review the matter of rising death toll of heart patients at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat, Shahbaz Sharif ordered to make health secretary Jahanzeb Khan and PIC chief executive Prof Dr Muhammad Azhar officers on special duty.
The chief minister also ordered suspension of PIC Medical Superintendent Dr Saleem Jaffar, Drug Testing Laboratory Director Abdus Salam Mufti, DMS store Dr Ali Hassan, pharmacist Muhammad Yousaf and storekeeper Zulfiqar.
Punjab Agriculture Secretary Capt Arif Nadeem has been given additional charge of health department secretary. The government has also decided to request the Lahore High Court to launch a judicial inquiry into the deaths due to suspected drugs’ reaction.
Meanwhile, the health department officials said the chief minister had removed the top officials while ignoring the fact that he himself held the portfolio of the health
minister.
As regards deaths, a health department official confirmed that Rasheedan Bibi, 60, a resident of Sargodha; Sarwar Begum, 70, a resident of Narowal; and Rehmat, 47, a resident of Samanabad, had died at Services Hospital due to drugs’ reaction. The death toll rose to 109 on Saturday.
While the health department is in denial mode on the number of deaths and claims that 85 deaths have been confirmed, the chief minister had himself announced a couple of days ago that the death toll had risen to 100.
The officials said the health department was also in the process of retrieving drugs in question from the patients.
When contacted, various top officials in the health department claimed that the drugs’ lab reports from within Pakistan were clear whereas the reports from London and France were awaited.
Following reports that the patients were dying due to overdose of the medicine given to them, PIC Medical Superintendent Dr Saleem Jaffar had earlier in the evening denied so.
Dr Jaffar confirmed that the police had called pharmacist Muhammad Yousaf and dispenser Zulfiqar to the Qila Gujjar Singh police station to record their statements.
A health department spokesman has claimed that 37 patients affected by PIC drugs’ reaction had recovered and discharged from various hospitals during the last 24 hours. Overall, 301 affected patients had recovered, he added.
http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/29/pic-drugs-scam-heads-roll-amid-rising-death-toll.html

2012-01-28T23:09:00.001-08:00

LHC declares drug-reaction petition maintainable

DAWN.COM

January 25, 2012 (4 days ago)

The Lahore High Court. - File Photo

LAHORE: Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday accepted a petition filed by judicial activism panel over the deaths allegedly caused by reaction of cardiac drugs prescribed by Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC), DawnNews reported.
The LHC registrar declared the petition maintainable.
The petitioners adopted the stance that the federal and provincial governments including health secretary and chairman PIC were responsible for loss of dozens of precious lives in Lahore.
Justice Omer Ata Bandial will hear the case on Jan 26.
Around 70 cardiac patients have died so far for using the medicines allegedly prescribed by the PIC.
A senior health official Saeed Illahi said that an investigation has found that a total of 419 heart patients have become sick from taking the drugs, and that 45 of them remain in critical condition.
Opposition in the Punjab Assembly has been showing resentment over the deaths for last couple of days.
They brought up the question of finding responsibility for the deaths on Tuesday.
They demanded Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s resignation and registration of a criminal case against him.
Speaking to media representatives outside the assembly, Leader of Opposition Raja Riaz urged chief justice of the apex court to take notice of the matter. “He (CJ) only finds faults in Pakistan People’s Party, he should take care of this matter too,” he added.
Moreover, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said that an inquiry by the provincial government was underway and all those responsible will soon be held accountable.
While, PML-N leader Dost Mohammad Khosa said that the deaths by substandard medicines was a criminal act and admitted that it was a difficult task to run the ministry of health by a person who is also chief minister of the province.
http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/25/lhc-declares-drug-reaction-petition-maintainable.html

2012-01-28T23:06:00.000-08:00

Bad medicine

Xari Jalil

January 27, 2012 (2 days ago)

A patient’s hand is blackened after using the tainted drug, one of the many mysterious symptoms. -Photo by author

“My father died last week, and now my mother has been hospitalised with the same problem. I swear to God, if something happens to her, I will burn this hospital down,” says Yasmin, as her eyes well up with angry tears. She is among the hundreds of people whose family members have been affected by the contaminated drugs doing the rounds at Lahore’s hospitals.
The news of these mysterious deaths has been doing the rounds since early January, and the current death toll (at the time of reporting) stands at 75, with over 200 patients (from all over Punjab) admitted in Lahore’s Mayo, Jinnah, Services, General and Ganga Ram hospitals. Medicines issued by the Pakistan Institute of Cardiology (PIC) remain the common link among these patients.
While it remains to be proved, common consensus is that the December 2011 batch of the medicine was the main cause of these mysterious deaths. It is feared that of the 46,000 patients to have been issued the medicine (from the latest batch), a large number could have fallen sick and died at home, with the number of hospital cases also feared to rise.
The Services Hospital has, in fact, seen an increase in the number of bereaved relatives, who have been filing in papers for their deceased family members. Coming to terms with the tragedy at hand, carrying certificates of death, they stand around confused and muddled. No one, they say, comes to their help.
Puzzling symptoms
“My father was admitted on January 1, after he started throwing up blood,” says Saquib. When his father was admitted, Saquib believes there must have been at least 50 other patients with the same symptoms at the Services Hospital.
“My mother began bleeding from the nose and mouth,” adds Shazia.
“Her face was dark like coal, she couldn’t eat or drink anything, she kept complaining of a dry throat, and her mouth smelled like a decaying corpse…as if something inside her was dying.”
Shazia is back at Services Hospital now, seeking a death certificate for her mother. The registration of her mother’s death may also allow her to receive the compensation money announced by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif. The hospitals, however, seem to be avoiding registering any more deaths over the next few days, especially those caused by this mysterious illness. Officials at the hospital, she alleges, are misleading her.
Several grieving relatives have not received death certificates, while others complain that their loved ones were forcibly discharged while they were still seriously ill.
“My father was very sick and weak, with blood in his urine and a constant nose-bleed,” says a young man, requesting anonymity. “But they administered a drip which stopped the vomiting for some time and told us to go home and carry on with the medication. No one bothered to check what was actually wrong. Some days later, my father died.”
Nothing, really, was meant to be wrong with medicines being used by the heart patients since they had been using the same pills for, in some cases, decades. Nothing had happened then, and they fail to understand what is happening now.
Saquib’s father had been admitted by early January, with the symptoms. By mid-January, the death toll had climbed up to 27. Only after January 20, 2012, did the constant media coverage wake up a slumbering Punjab Government and bring it on the forefront, unprepared. At first, tests conducted at a government-run lab showed no irregularities in medicines. However, with increased media coverage, a further test proved the presence of a toxic chemical.
Fatal formula
According to sources, a blood-thinning drug called ‘clopidogrell’ was initially believed to be the cause of the mysterious illness. However, reports showed that four to five of the affected patients were not using this drug. Later, it was strongly suspected that “cardiovastan” (brand name, drug formula: Simvastatin), which is a cholesterol-lowering drug was the reason.
The drug, which was being distributed to the patients, is being locally manufactured by Mega Pharmaceuticals.
Drugs, sources say, are tendered by private companies but only after being tested by labs for pre-qualification and are then re-tested before they are paid for – a procedure followed by the manufacturing company.
“Usually drugs are only assembled in Pakistan, with the raw materials being imported from abroad,” says the source. “The raw material used for this batch was perhaps not imported and was instead produced locally, making it sub-standard. Or, the arsenic used in the paint on top of the pill was in excess and resulted in poisoning. We are not sure what the cause is.”
Catching the culprits
Among the owners of the factory, who have been sent arrest warrants, one name that is repeatedly emerging is that of a PML-N parliamentarian, who is allegedly the ‘real’ owner of Mega Pharmaceuticals, while the ‘paper-owner’ is someone else, who is also involved in the chemicals business. While the matter remains puzzling, if the allegations are proven to be true, it may turn out to be a case of the Punjab Government trying to cover up the involvement of their MNA. In a more serious development, it has been discovered that another medicine, manufactured by the same pharmaceutical company, is being sold in the same packaging by the name of Megasar (formula: Losartan potassium, with international name Cozaar), which is prescribed for hypertension.

Two drugs, one of which is among the spurious medicines, are sold in the same packaging by the same company – leading to confusion among the patients. -Photo by author

Packaging two drugs in a similar manner is dangerous and misleading, according Dr Asma Zaman Faruqi, one of the United Kingdom’s (UK) top consultant pathologists.
“The two drugs are not similar in their actions and should not be packaged identically,” she says. “Both simvastatin and cozaar have been associated with haematological disorders, one of which isthrombocytopaenia – a condition in which the platelet-count falls, leading to bleeding disorders. It is a rare complication in both the drugs. It also needs to be investigated whether the patients involved were taking any other medicine or substance, which could have interacted with their medication.”
“The patients,” Dr Faruqi says, “could have been taking blood-thinners such as aspirin” and recommends a close study of the outbreak.
Mysterious moves
Earlier this week, the Medical Superintendent (MS) at Services Hospital, Dr Rehana Malik was stressing out in her office. Stealing a few minutes away from the pressures of the work outside, Dr Malik was in her office faxing figures to the health secretary of the Punjab Government and arranging for more beds and blankets for the medical wards, where the PIC patients were admitted.
However, in a swift and sudden action, Dr Malik was removed during the night shift by the chief minister, without announcing any replacement.
PML-N spokesperson Khwaja Salman Rafique, who arrived at Services Hospital on Wednesday morning, told reporters that the CM removed Dr Malik since he was not satisfied with the regulation of the wards and believed there monitoring was not up to the mark. Without any further explanation, the MS was nowhere to be found, even by aggrieved relatives, who wanted to carry out the paperwork.
Samples of the medicine, Salman said, had been sent abroad for testing, under the directives of the CM, who had taken ‘serious notice of the situation.’
A police FIR was lodged at the Shadman Police Station under Section-321, and the FIA have already caught four manufacturers, who are currently on remand.
“We must also note that more than 100 people have left and have recovered,” Salman insisted.

Waheed shows the medical report of his wife, who suffers from low platelet count and bruises, among other mysterious symptoms. -Photo by author

Meanwhile, another order issued by the chief minister – to serve the patients free of cost – has gone unnoticed by officials.
“I have to run around to get this injection for a bone-marrow,” says Waheed, whose wife is ill. “It costs about 60 rupees, but with the way things have gone, these people should not charge us with even a paisa.”
His wife has suffered from severe bruises on her skin, and her platelet level is below normal. Many other patients complain of chest pain and lack of oxygen.
Blame game
The President of Pakistan Medical Association Punjab Dr Ashraf Nizami, has condemned the CM for his carefree attitude towards health-related issues in the province.
“He (Shabaz Sharif) holds a portfolio of Health Minister, when there should be a separate ministry for this purpose,” says Dr Nizami. “He has failed to make any improvements in the health standards in his province. In fact, this is the second epidemic outbreak during his tenure, where people are dying in dozens,” he adds, referring to the dengue outbreak from last year.
The enquiry committee set up by the CM is headed by Dr Javed Akram, who also owns a pharmaceutical company, called Don Valley Pharmaceutical. “It is technically owned by his wife, but how can we exclude him from the issue?” questions another doctor at PMA.
The 48-member committee’s other members include PIC Chief Executive Professor Muhammad Azhar, Services Institute of Medical Sciences (SIMS) Principal Professor Faisal Masood, Professor Irshad Hussain, Professor Farzana Chaudhry, Professor Bashir Ahmad, Professor Farkhanda Kokab, Additional Secretary Health (Technical) and Dr Muhammad Anwar Janjua.
The hospitals are making attempts to retrieve the contaminated drugs, but some patients or mourning relatives are not complying.
“This is proof that we have in our hand,” says Waheed, pointing to the medicine. “We are going to keep it.”
PPP MNA Uzma Bukhari has vowed to keep the issue active and predominant during national assembly sessions. “We want an unbiased inquiry,” she says.
“It is disgusting the way the CM simply puts price tags on lives by compensating them with money. The man holding both portfolios should at least face the assembly and be held accountable for this crime. He never bothered to attend assembly sessions during the dengue epidemic, and he is still acting as if nothing has happened. The figures are simply alarming,” she adds.
Meanwhile, at the hospitals, patients and their relatives are left in the lurch – not knowing whether to remain hopeful of seeing their loved ones recover from the mysterious, or, to expect the worst.
The author is a freelance journalist.
http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/27/bad-medicine-2.html

Need for Massive Intellectual Activism in Pakistan

2012-01-15T01:53:00.000-08:00

By Mumtaz A. Piracha, Founder & Chairman, Good Governance Forum

It is the era of intellectual activism. We don't have to wait for the people to come on the streets. When the mind works, the body follows. All revolutions in the world's history have had their roots in intellectual activism including the recent most Iranian Revolution and the Arab Spring. Even the 'Long March' for the restoration of judges had its roots in intellectual activism. What media promotes is intellectual activism. So is the case with think tanks, discussion forums and word of mouth.

The people's participation in the Imran Khan's rallies emanated from intellectual activism carried on Facebook and Twitter, sms, voiced messages, emails, blogs, TV talk shows, newspaper columns, media conferences, public speeches etc.

Street Activism gives the final touches to a cause. It can't last for too long. It needs leadership. It needs enormous resources to mobilize people and keep them going for the cause. It took lawyers one full year to succeed.

The cheapest and the effective modus operandi is intellectual activism as the civil society movement influencing the people as well as the 'powers that be'. Nothing changes in Pakistan without the support of the 'powers that be.' That is a reality and we need to accept it.

Let us join hands to promote intellectual activism throughout Pakistan and among overseas Pakistanis. The modern technology has given us so many communication tools.

Good Governance Forum has been using Facebook and Twitter, blogs, emails, comments on newspapers, sms, public speeches, interviews to media etc. We will be launching our Web TV in March to reach the Internet Users in and out of Pakistan . With these modern tools, we look forward to play a key role in the upcoming general elections.

Email us your feedback at good.governance@gmail.com

2012-01-14T23:18:00.001-08:00

Zardari and Kayani meet for first time since memogate scandal
Times of India
Television channels beamed footage of a smiling President Zardari speaking
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uniform. The army chief had last spoken to Zardari on phone when he met
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President meets Asfandyar, discusses situation
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ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday held a meeting with ANP
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Gilani banks on House bailout
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Wavering allies: Govt still short on numbers
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As Crisis Festers, Pakistani Government Plans Confidence Vote
New York Times
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Pakistani expatriates hold reception to pay tribute to Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Gulf Today
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The Global Note: Marines To Be Charged?…US-Iran Secret Channel…Apple's ...
ABC News (blog)
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'US committed to crucial Pakistan relationship'
The News International
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari who had gone to Dubai on Thursday
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<http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=11757&Cat=13>
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Tension in Pakistan as Zardari travels, military meets
Vancouver Sun
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All well for AAZ
Pakistan Observer
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Pakistan, UK deny call expressing coup fears
Fox News
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Gunmen assault northwest Pakistan police station
CBS News
And then on Thursday, President Asif Ali Zardari flew to Dubai for a
wedding. He returned the next day, but the trip renewed speculation that he
might flee Pakistan if he felt he was about to lose power. On Friday,
Gilani called for a "show of ...
<http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501712_162-57359183/gunmen-assault-northwest-pakistan-police-station/>
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2012-01-14T23:17:00.001-08:00

President Zardari cuts short Dubai visit returns home
The News International
According to Presidency spokesman, Farhatullah Babar, President had reached
Pakistan after finishing his private business in Duabi. Earlier, President
Asif Ali Zardari left for Dubai on a scheduled one-day trip on Thursday
amid growing tension over the ...
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-30682-President-returns-from-Dubai>
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Pakistan president 'not worried' about crisis
Newsday
President Asif Ali Zardari is under intense pressure from the military
establishment, as well as what many see is a partisan Supreme Court intent
on ousting his government before the end of its term in 2013. Amid this
crisis, Zardari went to Dubai on ...
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nation/pakistan-president-not-worried-about-crisis-1.3449295>
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Zardari returns to Pak ahead of House session
The Statesman
Officials said Mr Zardari had gone to Dubai to attend the wedding of the
son of a friend and had returned as scheduled. Presidential spokesman Mr
Farhatullah Babar told the media that Mr Zardari had reached Islamabad at 5
am “President Zardari, ...
<http://www.thestatesman.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=396728&catid=35>
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Dubai trip fuels Zardari rumours
The Independent
Pakistan's president left the troubled country yesterday for what was
described as a one-day private visit to Dubai, officials said, in the midst
of a deepening crisis between the government and the powerful military.
Early last month, Asif Ali Zardari ...
<http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/dubai-trip-fuels-zardari-rumours-6288970.html>
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Asif Ali Zardari returns to Pakistan from Dubai trip
Economic Times
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has returned to Pakistan from a trip
to Dubai, his spokesman said on Friday, as speculation swirled over whether
he would survive heightened tension between his civilian government and the
country's powerful ...
<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/asif-ali-zardari-returns-to-pakistan-from-dubai-trip/articleshow/11471836.cms>
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Prez Asif Ali Zardari back in politically unstable Pakistan
Oneindia
Islamabad, Jan 13: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, cut short his visit
and returned politically turbulent Pakistan, said reports. The President
had left for Dubai on Thursday, Jan 12 to attend a wedding. Keeping in mind
the political turmoil in ...
<http://news.oneindia.in/2012/01/13/prez-asif-ali-zardari-back-in-politically-unstable-pak.html>
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Marine urination video from Afghanistan elicits wide condemnation
The Seattle Times
By Nancy A. Youssef Pakistan president: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari
flew to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, on Thursday on what an aide
said was a short visit for a wedding and a medical checkup from which he
would return Friday. ...
<http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2017225824_marines13.html>
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PRESIDENT ZARDARI HAS RETURNED TO PAKISTAN FROM
Chicago Tribune
PRESIDENT ZARDARI HAS RETURNED TO PAKISTAN FROM DUBAI TRIP-PRESIDENTIAL
SPOKESMAN.
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-rt-president-zardari-has-returned-to-pakistan-from-20120112,0,2550092.story>
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News Wrap: US Chamber Chief Warns Against Romney Criticism Over Role at Firm
PBS NewsHour
HARI SREENIVASAN: The president of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, left the
country again today, amid rising tensions with his country's military.
Pakistani officials said it was a day trip to Dubai for a wedding. Zardari
spent several weeks in Dubai last ...
<http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/jan-june12/othernews_01-12.html>
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India keeps close watch on Pakistan as crisis unfolds
Times of India
NEW DELHI : As Pakistan's political crisis slipped into a theatre of the
absurd, with Pakistani president Asif Zardari dashing off to Dubai
reportedly for a medical check-up amid the worst civilian-military face-off
in recent times, Indian leaders said ...
<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/India-keeps-close-watch-on-Pakistan-as-crisis-unfolds/articleshow/11469808.cms>
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ANP will resist any unconstitutional move: Asfandyar
The News International
Asfandyar did not see any problem with President Asif Ali Zardari going to
Dubai for a day for medical check-up. Asked whether he would support early
general elections, he said the Senate election would be held between
February 11 and March 11. ...
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=11711&Cat=13>
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'Memogate' scandal deepens as American accuser threatens to tell all
The Guardian
The allegations made by Mansoor Ijaz reach all the way up to President Asif
Zardari, and could end up with treason charges against the country's former
US ambassador, Husain Haqqani, or even the president himself. But critics
say that the charges are a ...
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/12/memogate-scandal-pakistan-isi-haqqani>
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Market Watch: Bourse falls to four-month low
The Express Tribune
President Asif Ali Zardari left for Dubai on a scheduled one-day trip on
Thursday as the political arena witnessed growing tension over the alleged
memo seeking US help in preventing a coup by the military. Trade volumes
fell to an even more dismal ...
<http://tribune.com.pk/story/320590/market-watch-bourse-falls-to-four-month-low/>
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Pakistan, UK deny call expressing coup fears
Austin American-Statesman
(AP Photo/Ijaz Muhammad) FILE - In this Friday, July 1, 2011 file photo,
Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari, followed by his son Bilawal Bhutto
Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party, exits after his meeting
with Britain's Prime Minister ...
<http://www.statesman.com/news/nation/pakistan-uk-deny-call-expressing-coup-fears-2099248.html>
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AfPak Daily brief: Coup fears abound in Pakistan
Foreign Policy (blog)
President Asif Ali Zardari is said to have returned from a short trip to
Dubai Friday, as the AP reports that Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani
placed a "panicky" call to Britain's High Commissioner in Pakistan this
week, asking for Britain's support ...
<http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/01/13/daily_brief_coup_fears_abound_in_pakistan

>
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What does Pervez Musharraf want?
Foreign Policy (blog)
Additionally, with the military's anger at Prime Minister Yousaf Raza
Gilani and President Asif Ali Zardari boiling over this week, there is good
reason to suspect the army will be willing to help extend a small favor to
an army politician. ...
<http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/01/12/what_does_pervez_musharraf_want>
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Pak political parties hope _sense will prevail
indiablooms
President Asif Ali Zardari flying to Dubai yesterday on a personal trip
while the army chief and his top commanders held a meeting in Rawalpindi
fuelled speculation that the generals, who set security and foreign
policies, have lost patience with the ...
<http://www.indiablooms.com/VideoDetails/videoDetails130112q.php>
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The 9 at 9: Friday
thejournal.ie
#PAKISTAN: The Pakistani president Asif Al Zardari has returned home from a
short trip to Dubai amid growing fears that there could be a military coup
in his country. Tensions between Pakistan's traditionally strong military
and the government have ...
<http://www.thejournal.ie/the-9-at-9-friday-60-326982-Jan2012/>
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In rescue of Haqqani
Pakistan Observer
... the so-called bunch of scholars failed to read between the lines in the
conduct of Hussain Haqqani and Asif Ali Zardari, during meeting of top
echelon in which he was made to resign and later at the time of departure
of Zardari for Dubai. ...
<http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=135217>
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It's the Latest 'Surge'
Antiwar.com
It looks like President Asif "Ten Percent" Zardari has fled to Dubai, days
away from meeting a crucial deadline on which the fate of his government
depends: a demand by the Supreme Court that it justify its continued
ability to rule. ...
<http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2012/01/12/its-the-latest-surge/>
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US Voices Concerns about Pakistan's Political Crisis
CRIENGLISH.com
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday left for Dubai for medical
checkup amid deepening political crisis in the country. The crisis was
triggered by an alleged memo sent to Washington asking for US help in
staving off a military coup, ...
<http://english.cri.cn/6966/2012/01/13/2724s676015.htm>
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World news in brief, 1/13
San Angelo Standard Times
They said President Asif Ali Zardari would attend a wedding in Dubai and
would be back in Pakistan on Friday morning. As Zardari left, military
chief Gen. Ashfaq Pervez Kayani met with top commanders, media reports and
a military officer said, ...
<http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2012/jan/12/wbriefs/>
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Pakistan president 'not worried' about crisis
Newsday
... president returned on Friday from a trip to Dubai that provoked fresh
questions over whether he was being pushed out of office, his spokesman
said, adding that the leader was not worried about his political future.
President Asif Ali Zardari is ...
<http://www.newsday.com/news/pakistan-president-not-worried-about-crisis-1.3449271>
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Myanmar signs ceasefire with rebel group
Foreign Policy (blog)
Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned a video that looks to show US
soldiers urinating on corpses of Taliban fighters. Pakistani President Asif
Ali Zardari flew to Dubai, reportedly for a wedding, amid rising political
tensions. ...
<http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/node/1137316>
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DCC meeting tomorrow Generals quietly review options
DAWN.com
The meeting took place as President Asif Zardari flew to Dubai on a daylong
visit for a follow-up medical examination and attending a wedding ceremony;
and the government announced that it had convened the Defence Committee of
the Cabinet for Saturday. ...
<http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/13/dcc-meeting-tomorrow-generals-quietly-review-options.html>
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Kayani meets core men, coup fears intact in Pak
Zee News
President Zardari on the other hand, was on a scheduled visit to Dubai
today and he is reported to be coming back to Pakistan on Friday. The
one-day trip came after a confrontation between Pakistan's civilian leaders
and the military over a probe into ...
<http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/kayani-meets-core-men-coup-fears-intact-in-pak_752083.html>
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Moving Story of Arfa Karim

2012-01-14T23:15:00.000-08:00

By Muskan Hina • Jan 15th, 2012

Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji‘un

May Allah rest her in eternal peace.

She came, she did and she conquered. When everything was down in the Pakistan, she stood and illuminated the national scene with her brilliance.

Bill Gates, the chairman of Microsoft changed his opinion about Pakistan altogether after meeting with Arfa Karim. Arfa Karim got the honor of World’s Youngest Microsoft Certified Professional when she was only 9 years old in 2004. Bill Gates, the Chairman of Microsoft, invited Arfa to visit the Microsoft Headquarters in the USA in the age of 10 only. Bill was impressed by Arfa that he immediately directed his HR to hire from Pakistan in bulk, and he never regretted that decision.

Her powerful presence shook the otherwise lazy Pakistani officials too. After her recognition by the West, she was honored with Fatima Jinnah Gold Medal in the field of Science and Technology which she received from then Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. She was also honored with Salaam Pakistan Youth Award in 2005 which has been set up by Pakistan’s only Nobel laureate Dr Abdul Salam. Besides of this, Arfa has won the Presidential Award for Pride of Performance.

She was a certified pilot, she was equally adept in Microsoft, Cisco and Oracle products. She could present complex technical concept with flowing ease. She was the mentor of hundreds of people, and she was particularly interested in finishing up digital divide within her own country. She always wanted to remain Pakistan. She didn’t like the brain drain and wanted to bring those brains back.

Can we fullfil her dream, as she is no more alive? Arfa Karim remained in intensive care at Combined Military Hospital (CMH) after suffering an epileptic seizure and cardiac arrest a few weeks ago. After battling for life for 26 days, she left us thinking, tearful, and with the gift of believing in ourselves.

http://www.pkhope.com/moving-story-of-arfa-karim/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Amid Crisis, President of Pakistan Visits Dubai

2012-01-14T02:45:00.000-08:00

January 12, 2012

By SALMAN MASOOD

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — President Asif Ali Zardari flew to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, on Thursday on what an aide said was a short visit for a wedding from which he would return overnight. The move was surprising, coming as tensions between the civilian government and the country’s powerful military have risen sharply and drawn in the judiciary.
“President Zardari has gone to Dubai to attend the wedding of a son of a friend,” said Farhatullah Babar, Mr. Zardari’s spokesman. Mr. Babar identified the friend as Arif Zarooni, a man close to the rulers of Dubai, where Mr. Zardari maintains a residence. His last visit there, on Dec. 6 for medical treatment, set off speculation about his political future. Many were surprised by his return to Pakistan later in the month.
Later, the Pakistani news channel Geo TV quoted Mr. Babar as saying that Mr. Zardari had returned early Friday.
The frictions between the military and civilian leaders have been intensifying since the American operation in Pakistan in May that killed Osama bin Laden. The strains worsened sharply in October after an American businessman of Pakistani descent published a memo that he said was drafted by the government shortly after Bin Laden was killed and which appeared to solicit help from the United States in reining in the Pakistani military, smarting from the American raid.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani fired the secretary of defense, Khalid Naeem Lodhi, a retired general and confidant of the army chief, accusing him of misconduct. The military leadership issued a strong statement warning Mr. Gilani that recent criticism of the chiefs of the army and intelligence service would have “serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country.”
Mr. Gilani had accused Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, the army chief, and Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the head of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, of violating the Constitution by submitting statements in the Supreme Court in which they said the controversial memo was authentic and urged the judges to investigate its origins.
A three-member judicial panel is holding an inquiry into the memo and will resume its hearing on Jan. 16. A separate bench of the Supreme Court is scheduled to convene that day to hear the government’s explanation for failing to comply with earlier court orders to reopen corruption cases against Mr. Zardari.
Some opposition politicians and analysts accuse the governing Pakistan Peoples Party of having manufactured the intense acrimony as a political strategy.
“The P.P.P. leadership wants to become political martyrs by provoking the army and goading it to boot the government out,” said Enver Baig, a former senator.
“The government has nothing to show to the people and its performance is all marred with corruption and mismanagement. They are by design taking this confrontation to gain political mileage and capital.”
“The only solution to the current impasse is an early election,” Mr. Baig added. General elections are due in 2013, but there are growing calls for early polls.
Meanwhile, others see the government’s situation as being trapped in a tightening vise.
“Pakistan’s military is in no mood” for a coup, said Raza Rumi, a columnist. “The real threat for the government is a proactive Supreme Court which has taken a serious notice of noncompliance with its orders.
“The civilian government is stuck between two powerful institutions, which are no longer comfortable with business as usual.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/13/world/asia/amid-crisis-pakistan-president-asif-ali-zardari-heads-again-to-dubai.html?sq=pakistan&st=cse&scp=2&pagewanted=print

The Imran Khan Phenomenon

2012-01-14T02:38:00.000-08:00

Is Pakistan’s cricket star-turned-politician for real?

BY ARIF RAFIQ | JANUARY 12, 2012

In 1992, with his cricket career at its twilight, an aging Imran Khan boldly pledged that the Pakistani national team would win the World Cup for the first time. In March of that year, before a packed stadium in Melbourne, Pakistan defeated former colonial master England, taking the cup and shocking the world of cricket. Khan returned home with a trophy in his hands, enshrined forever as a national hero.

These days, Khan leads another group of underdogs: a political party known as the Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf (PTI). Last September, Khan made a familiarly bold prediction: PTI, which has only won a single National Assembly seat in its 15-year history, will sweep the next general elections. PTI, Khan says without a semblance of doubt, will rid Pakistan of corruption, endemic poverty, and violence -- and eventually bring the country to what he sees as its rightful place on the world stage.

Since his retirement from cricket, Khan has been devoted to social work and politics. Inspired by his mother's death, he founded the world-class Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Center, trusted and respected by Pakistanis of all stripes. Khan's political career, however, has been another story. PTI, despite the initial hype and fanfare, never really took off. Its founding members left the scene early on, and Khan was regularly outsmarted by wilier politicos.

A solitary Khan would regularly lambast the political class on Pakistan's many talk shows. Critics dismissed him as the darling of the country's television anchors and the electorally irrelevant "burger-baby" and "mummy-daddy" types (i.e. coddled, Westernized, rootless, upper-middle class youth). Political satire shows lampooned him as a raving, repetitive political loser.

In 2005, Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, then a backer of military ruler Pervez Musharraf, mocked Khan and patronizingly offered to help him win a seat "anywhere he wants." Fast forward six years ahead, and Sheikh Rashid, seated next to Khan on live television, was ingratiatingly referring to the ex-cricketer as a "brother" and meekly asking him for help in winning a few seats in the next elections.

Once an electoral non-entity, Khan's PTI could potentially win dozens of National Assembly seats in the next polls -- hence the Pauline conversion of opportunists like Sheikh Rashid. Already, PTI has upended the détente between the two major political powers -- the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) -- and put both on the defensive. PTI might become the country's third-largest party, giving it the power to determine who heads Pakistan's next coalition government. Khan, no longer a political joke, is a potential kingmaker positioned to prove the doubters wrong once again.

Pakistan's political class began to take PTI seriously last fall as the party organized a series of large rallies in Punjab, the country's largest province and home to its most competitive elections. In late October, PTI beat all expectations and gathered more than 100,000 people in Lahore, the home turf of the PML-N. The jalsa, or gathering, was a smartly choreographed and nationally televised spectacle, featuring religious conservatives, students from the city's elite schools, and well-to-do housewives. Together, they listened to rousing speeches by politicians and musical performances by the country's top pop artists, and sang the national anthem. An article in the web edition of Pakistan's Express Tribune declared, "Imran Khan's 'tsunami' sweeps Lahore." In Lahore, Khan proved he was able to mobilize large numbers of potential voters in a key constituency, signaling to political free agents that his party has a fundraising and logistical network that can get out the vote on Election Day.

Despite his newfound success, the core of Khan's message has remained the same over the years. He has railed against what he describes as a corrupt, venal political class and an invasive, bullying America. In 1996, he called Asif Ali Zardari, then Pakistan's first husband, the country's "biggest disease." He continues to describe Zardari, now the president, as a major impediment to Pakistan's progress. In 2004, Khan opposed Pakistani military operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, warning that once a war with the local tribes begins, "the entire army will be stuck in the tribal areas forever." In 2011, he was instrumental in forging a consensus statement at an all-parties conference that called for talks with the Taliban.

With tensions rising with the United States and a faltering economy, Khan is striking a chord in Pakistan unlike ever before. Pakistanis, ravaged by the scourge of terrorism during the decade after 9/11, saw themselves as casualties of America's war in Afghanistan. Now, after an ugly downturn in U.S.-Pakistan relations in 2011 -- including the humiliating Abbottabad raid to capture Osama bin Laden -- many believe America's actual target is Pakistan itself.

Khan's supporters see him as the most credible advocate for ending Islamabad's support of America's wars in Pakistan and Afghanistan. While other politicians have publicly condemned U.S. action in Pakistan, WikiLeaks cables demonstrate that they tend to speak more approvingly to U.S. officials in private. In contrast, Khan seems to have delivered the same message to the street and the State Department.

At the heart of PTI's sudden rise is the confluence of an effective narrative, a charismatic and credible evangelist, and fortuitous timing. As Pakistan's ties with the United States have worsened, so have problems with its economy and government. The consumer price index is close to the teens, putting great strain on the average Pakistani's finances. The state-owned airlines, railways, and steel mills bleed billions of dollars a year. Prolonged electricity blackouts have continued for their sixth straight year, hammering local industries.

To fix all this, Khan promises to make Pakistan an "Islamic welfare state" where the government promotes justice and equity, is devoid of corruption, and offers social services to the poor. Pakistan, Khan says, should emulate non-Western economic success stories, such as Mahathir Mohammed's Malaysia, Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore, and Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Turkey.

For his supporters, Khan is a symbol of what can go right in a country that has seen so much wrong. And he is seen as a leader who has promised victory when the odds were against him and has regularly come through in the clutch. When Khan announced his plans to build a cancer hospital, it was dismissed as "unworkable idea," according to Pakistani commentator Tariq Bashir. But "like Imran Khan's cricketing career," Bashir writes, the institution has become a "surprising success stor[y]."

With anti-incumbent sentiment running high as voters blame the country's two largest parties for the ugly status quo, Khan is the perfect candidate for Pakistanis sick of the usual suspects or skeptical about whether democracy even works for Pakistan. The two major parties are seen by many as having been tried, tested, and failed. The PPP rules at the center, while the PML-N runs Punjab, the largest province. Each has had two previous shots at running the country since 1988.

PTI has shaken up Pakistani politics. Since the Lahore rally, PTI's rivals have tried to emulate the party's use of social media, youth outreach, and even the musical interludes during speeches. Some reports even claim that the PTI challenge has forced the country's two major parties to reposition and mutually obstruct Khan's advance.

Meanwhile, droves of electable politicians, including three former foreign ministers, have defected from Pakistan's major political parties to join the PTI. The new entrants include many members of the previous army-backed government under Musharraf, causing the PTI central vice president to resign in protest.

Khan says he can't find angels to join PTI. He's right. For years he sought unsuccessfully to build the party from the bottom up. When he founded his party, he pledged to bring in a new class of politician to supplant the "predatory" politicians who have "sieged" Pakistan's system.

But Pakistani voters tend to be pragmatic rent-seekers, siding with the candidate they feel will most effectively channel state resources their way. Khan needs politicians with a track record of winning. The party also benefits from the experience brought by an influx of established politicians, who can help add depth to the party's policy agenda.

And yet, however necessary, PTI's recruitment of established politicians challenges its claim that it is in pursuit of tabdeeli, or change. It will have to leverage Khan's leadership and clean image to counterbalance the growing perception that it is old wine in a new bottle. If PTI fails to do so, it will find it difficult to hold on to young and upper-middle class supporters, traditional non-voters who see Khan as their favorite anti-politician politician.

In the coming weeks and months, PTI will develop its election manifesto. This will be an opportunity for Khan and company to explain how they will address Pakistan's structural weaknesses. PTI will have to articulate its plans to increase government revenue and reduce federal debt, salvage sinking government-owned corporations, lower dependence on natural gas and increase the efficiency of the electricity grid, attract foreign direct investment and boost domestic economic growth, deal with militants who do not lay down their arms and continue their war against the state, and find a place for Pakistan in a rising Asia -- beyond making endearing platitudes to China.

None of Pakistan's problems can be solved overnight. They require not just bold leadership, but quiet skills developed with political experience, such as the ability to assemble coalitions and build consensus. As much as Khan rails against the system, in the event PTI leads the next governing coalition, he will need allies in the bureaucracy, military, and parliament to push his agenda through. Democracy skeptics and politicians who have jumped on the PTI bandwagon could leave as quickly they have joined. And Khan's political opponents might lack the capability or will to solve Pakistan's problems, but they are certainly able to prevent him from doing so.

Imran Khan describes his party's rise as a "tsunami" engulfing the nation's politics. For the first time, PTI will likely have the numbers to influence government policy after elections are held sometime this year. With political success comes great responsibility. If Khan and PTI fail to rise to the challenge, their tsunami will be nothing but a natural disaster.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/01/12/the_imran_khan_phenomenon?page=full

As Crisis Festers, Pakistani Government Plans Confidence Vote

2012-01-14T02:37:00.001-08:00

January 13, 2012

By DECLAN WALSH

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Threatened with prosecution by a hostile judiciary and fearing an intervention by powerful generals, Pakistan’s embattled government turned Friday to its last bastion of strength, the national Parliament, in a bid to stall the momentum of a crisis that threatens to engulf the governing party.
Addressing Parliament, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani announced that he would ask for a vote Monday on a resolution seeking “full confidence and trust” in his coalition government. It was his latest gambit in a complex power struggle set off by the American raid that killed Osama bin Laden in May.
Pakistan’s fractious politicians must choose between “democracy and dictatorship,” Mr. Gilani said, speaking hours after President Asif Ali Zardari returned from a brief trip to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, that reignited rumors of an impending military coup.
Pakistani analysts and Western diplomats believe that the prospects of a coup are receding, for now. But the situation remains volatile as the country’s most powerful figures — senior judges, generals and politicians — engage in a bare-knuckle and unusually public bout of power games in which the United States finds itself sidelined.
At heart, the governing Pakistan Peoples Party and the military, led by Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, are struggling for control of national security policy, including the right to direct the strained relationship with the United States. A strident judiciary and the possibility of elections as early as this summer add complicating factors.
The beginning of the struggle came in the fall, when an American businessman of Pakistani origin, Mansoor Ijaz, made a startling claim: that in the acrid aftermath of the Bin Laden raid on May 2, he had been asked to take a secret letter to the Americans seeking protection for Mr. Zardari’s government from a possible military coup. In exchange, it offered to dismantle part of the country’s powerful spy agency.
Pakistan’s military angrily demanded an investigation into the unsigned memo and embraced Mr. Ijaz’s assertion that it had been dictated by Husain Haqqani, Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington. Mr. Haqqani, since recalled to Pakistan, has denied that account.
However, the military ignored a later statement by Mr. Ijaz that Lt. Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or ISI, visited the Persian Gulf region during the same period to seek support for a coup.
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court is investigating what the Pakistani news outlets call “Memogate” and is scheduled to make its finding by month’s end. Meanwhile Mr. Haqqani, who could face treason charges, has confined himself to Mr. Gilani’s house in Islamabad, telling reporters that he fears for his life.
The true target of the inquiry may be Mr. Haqqani’s boss: Mr. Zardari, leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party. The P.P.P. and the military have a deep mutual mistrust going back three decades. Many generals barely disguise their loathing for the president, who came to power in 2008, in elections after the assassination of his wife, Benazir Bhutto, and who has struggled to shake off a reputation of irredeemable corruption.
For most of 2011, his government sought to ease the tension by defending the embattled generals, particularly against withering domestic criticism after the Bin Laden raid from a public distrustful of the United States and fiercely protective of their nation’s sovereignty. But the rising emotions over the Memogate crisis swept any unity away.
In December, Mr. Gilani said he would not tolerate a “state within a state”; this week he fired the senior bureaucrat in the Defense Ministry, a retired three-star general. That day, the military issued a warning that the government’s statements could have “very serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country.”
One analyst saw two rationales for the military’s furious stance over the memo. First, it could be using the Supreme Court to “get Zardari out,” said Najam Sethi, editor of The Friday Times and a senior analyst with Geo, the country’s largest television news network. Second, he said, “Kayani and Pasha have both been considerably weakened by the actions of the Americans.”
“They are having to act extra tough to appease their own ranks,” Mr. Sethi said.
The conflict shows that the military “is rigid and uncompromising and not prepared to concede an inch of its turf,” he added. “It wants to run foreign policy, it wants to be able to do whatever it wants, and doesn’t want any accountability at all.”
In the past, the military has ended frustrations with civilian governments with coups, in 1958, 1969, 1977 and 1999.
This time, analysts say, the military has little incentive for such a move. The economy is in a parlous state, a homegrown Taliban insurgency bubbles in the northwest, and the generals are still smarting from the damage to their reputation from the unpopular nine-year-rule of Pervez Musharraf, which began in the most recent coup and ended in 2008.
In addition, there is unprecedented, real-time scrutiny from a vociferous electronic news media. And the generals can no longer count on the Supreme Court to rubber-stamp a takeover — although the judiciary led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry appears to have its own antipathy for Mr. Zardari and the P.P.P.
As the scandal raged, the court upped the stakes by renewing its order that the government cooperate with a Swiss corruption investigation against Mr. Zardari. The court accused Mr. Gilani of “willful disobedience” for not doing so, and gave the government until Monday to comply. Failure could lead to Mr. Gilani’s losing his office, it has warned, offering the prospect of a disastrous clash of institutions.
Whether Mr. Chaudhry would risk such a standoff is unclear.
The likelihood of early elections is far greater. As power drains from Mr. Zardari’s government, few believe it will last until the Parliament’s term ends in February 2013. The question is when the vote would take place, and on whose terms.
The government’s objective is to survive until Senate elections, which are to be held before March. Senators are elected by the national and provincial assemblies, and the election will probably give the P.P.P. a majority of seats and control of the upper house for six years.
But a major opposition leader, Nawaz Sharif, favors early general elections — to avert such a Senate outcome and to stem the threat from a new rival, the former cricket star turned politician Imran Khan. Mr. Khan is a wild card, drawing huge crowds at recent rallies in Lahore and Karachi and threatening Mr. Sharif’s base in Punjab Province. Critics accuse him of enjoying the tacit support of the ISI.
“I don’t think the army will mount a coup because they don’t need one when they have Imran Khan,” said C. Christine Fair, an assistant professor at Georgetown University.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/14/world/asia/amid-crisis-parliament-in-pakistan-to-vote-on-affirming-civilian-rule.html?sq=pakistan&st=cse&scp=3&pagewanted=print

2012-01-12T20:21:00.000-08:00

President Zardari leaves for Dubai for a day: spokesman
The Nation, Pakistan
President Asif Ali Zardari left for Dubai on a private visit for medical
checkup amidst hitherto unresolved standoff between the civil and military
leaderships. According to Presidential Spokesman Farhatullah Babar, the
President Zardari will come back ...
<http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/12-Jan-2012/president-zardari-leaves-for-dubai-for-a-day-spokesman>
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US missile kills 4 in Pakistan
Atlanta Journal Constitution
Early last month, President Asif Ali Zardari traveled to Dubai for medical
treatment, triggering rumors that he was either being pushed out by the
army or was fleeing a potential coup. He returned after a few weeks, but
tensions have continued to soar ...
<http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/us-missile-kills-4-1300299.html>
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Pakistan's Zardari leaves for Dubai - reports
Moneycontrol.com
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari left for Dubai
on a scheduled one-day trip on Thursday, local television stations
reported, amid growing tension over a memo seeking US help in preventing a
coup by Pakistan's powerful military ...
<http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/wire-news/pakistans-zardari-leaves-for-dubai-reports_649762.html>
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PRESIDENT ZARDARI WILL RETURN TO PAKISTAN FRIDAY
Chicago Tribune
PRESIDENT ZARDARI WILL RETURN TO PAKISTAN FRIDAY FROM DUBAI TRIP-FOREIGN
MINISTRY SPOKESMAN.
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-rt-president-zardari-will-return-to-pakistan-friday-20120112,0,3013353.story>
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Pakistan President In Dubai For Brief Visit - Aide
Wall Street Journal (India)
ISLAMABAD (AFP)--Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari was in Dubai
Thursday for a brief visit to attend a wedding and possibly have a health
check, a close aide said. The trip, which the aide said would last one day,
comes as the embattled government ...
<http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20120112-703540.html>
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PAKISTAN PRESIDENT ZARDARI DEPARTED FOR ONE-DAY
Chicago Tribune
PAKISTAN PRESIDENT ZARDARI DEPARTED FOR ONE-DAY PRIVATE TRIP TO
DUBAI-PAKISTANI TELEVISION STATIONS.
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-rt-pakistan-president-zardari-departed-for-one-day-20120112,0,7076633.story>
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UPI NewsTrack TopNews
UPI.com
12 (UPI) -- Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari left Thursday on a one-day
scheduled trip for Dubai amid an uncertain situation at home, local TV
channels reported. Zardari's trip comes as relations between his civilian
government and the country's ...
<http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2012/01/12/UPI-NewsTrack-TopNews/UPI-38631326374568/?spt=hs&or=tn>
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Pakistani President leaves for UAE for medical check-up
Islamic Republic News Agency
According to the spokesperson, President Zardari went to Dubai on a one-day
trip. He was released from a Dubai hospital last month after being treated
for a transient ischemic attack. Pakistani President leaves for UAE for
medical check - up.
<http://www.irna.ir/ENNewsShow.aspx?NID=30762112&SRCH=1>
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Zardari not resigning amid confrontation with SC
The Statesman
PTI ISLAMABAD, 11 JAN: Amid a looming confrontation between the Supreme
Court and the government, Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari today made it
clear that he did not intend to resign even as an urgent session of
parliament has been called to ...
<http://www.thestatesman.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=396500&catid=37>
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Zardari headed to Dubai, says Pak media
NDTV
Islamabad: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has left for a one-day
private visit to Dubai, say Pakistan media reports. The departure comes as
tension between Mr Zardari's government and the army have hit a new high,
prompting speculation of a ...
<http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/zardari-headed-to-dubai-says-pak-media-166233>
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Live! Alistair Pereira gets 3 yrs for mowing down seven in 2006
Rediff
18:00 Pak foreign ministry confirms Zardari will return tomorrow: Pakistan
Foreign Ministry spokesman confirms that President Asif Ali Zardari will
return to Pakistan from Dubai on Friday. Zardari left for a one-day visit
to Dubai for personal reasons, ...
<http://news.rediff.com/commentary/2012/jan/12/liveupdates.htm>
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Syria's Assad blames unrest on 'foreign conspiracy'
Link TV
The controversy centers on the amnesty granted to politicians including
President Asif Zardari from corruption charges in 2007 by then military
ruler General Pervez Musharraf. However, in late 2008 the Supreme Court
declared the amnesty ...
<http://www.linktv.org/scripts/episode_transcript.php?episode=mosaic2012011018>
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AfPak Daily brief: Talks with the Taliban may resume soon
Foreign Policy (blog)
Ashfaq Parvez Kayani met behind closed doors with his top military
commanders Thursday, as the country's increasingly embattled president Asif
Ali Zardari flew to Dubai for a brief trip, reportedly to attend a wedding
and undergo a medical checkup (AP, ...
<http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/01/12/daily_brief_talks_with_the_taliban_may_resume_soon>
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Pakistan: PM Fires Defense Secretary
Eurasia Review
Ijaz later claimed the diplomat was Pakistan's then-ambassador to the
United States, Husain Haqqani, an ally of President Asif Ali Zardari who is
disliked by Pakistani military officials because of his strong advocacy of
civilian supremacy. ...
<http://www.eurasiareview.com/12012012-pakistan-pm-fires-defense-secretary/>
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India tracking developments in Pak
Hindustan Times
... Ijaz to help prevent a military coup which Pakistani President Asif Ali
Zardari feared after the killing of Al Qaeda chief Osma bin Laden in a US
raid last May. In December, Zardari flew to Dubai for medical treatment,
triggering rumours of a coup. ...
<http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/India-tracking-developments-in-Pak/Article1-795760.aspx>
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Mourners throng Kingri House; burial today in Pir Jo Goth: Pir Pagara's body ...
Business Recorder (blog)
President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani have
telephoned Pir Pagaro's sons in London to condole with them over the sad
demise of their father. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah
announced three-day mourning ...
<http://www.brecorder.com/general-news/single/599/172/1141816/>
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Were You Eager for President Zardari's Return?

2012-01-12T20:19:00.000-08:00

Poll

Were You Eager For President Zardari's Return From UAE?

Yes (20%)

No (80%)

Total votes :7381

Accessed 13 Jan 2012

http://pk.msn.com/news/localnews/jg/2012/january/11963796/senate-elections-march.aspx?ref=hptab

2012-01-11T07:46:00.001-08:00

Zardari cancels Dubai visit
International News Network
Sources further disclosed that an important meeting with high profile
leader of Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) with President Zardari was also on
cards during his stay in Dubai. He was scheduled to be shifted to American
Hospital in Dubai on his ...
<http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/details.php?id=187929>
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The options for the delinquent duo
The News International
DUBAI: The chips are down for President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani
as they now have a direct confrontation with all the key institutions
guaranteed by the Constitution. There is no way to wriggle out safely.
Unfortunately this situation has been ...
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=11641&Cat=13>
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Mystery over Zardari's medical tests 'in Dubai'
The National
DUBAI // Officials from the Pakistan People's Party are unable to confirm
whether the country's president, Asif Ali Zardari, is to return to Dubai
for medical tests. The media in Pakistan has reported that Mr Zardari, 56,
who underwent treatment for a ...
<http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/mystery-over-zardaris-medical-tests-in-dubai>
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Pakistan's ex-US envoy challenges memo scandal probe
AFP
The highly controversial unsigned memo was allegedly an attempt by
President Asif Ali Zardari, through his close aide and former envoy Hussain
Haqqani, to enlist help from the US military to head off a feared coup in
Pakistan last year. ...
<http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iWRSS6t7_KWqiZhm01kxIh9odulQ?docId=CNG.4b7ab4b02d9b30a080640aed4f7b015d.161>
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US wants strong dialogues between Pak govt, military
South Asian News Agency
... US foreign office is reviewing those reservations which have been
raised in letter. She said that we welcome new Pakistani ambassador to
Washington Sherry Rehman adding that she has no information regarding
President Asif Ali Zardari's visit to Dubai.
<http://www.sananews.net/english/2012/01/us-wants-strong-dialogues-between-pak-govt-military/>
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2012-01-11T07:44:00.002-08:00

President Zardari due in Dubai on Wednesday
International News Network
Dubai: President Asif Ali Zardari will arrive here on two-day private visit
tomorrow (Wednesday). Well-placed sources in Pakistan told Online that
President would be here for medical checkup and would stay here for two
days (January 11- 12). ...
<http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/details.php?id=187873>
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President Zardari to depart for Dubai soon
PakistanToday.com.pk
Zardari saab aap bhi zallel ker dete hain politicians n media men ko….
arosa and mehreen are jealous i think … sarah palen ! Your email address
will not be published. Required fields are marked * Notify me of follow-up
comments by email. Brig. ...
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Tensions high as NRO deadline expires today
The Nation, Pakistan
Meanwhile, quoting sources private TV channels claimed that President Asif
Ali Zardari may leave for Dubai today. “All arrangements have been
finalized and the President may leave for Dubai any time soon,” it said.
However, no official confirmation was ...
<http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/10-Jan-2012/tensions-high-as-nro-deadline-expires-today>
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Ruling out clash: Zardari warns against anti-govt scheming
The Express Tribune
Zardari is expected to leave for Dubai in the next 48 hours. A spokesperson
for Bilawal House was quoted by the media as saying that the president was
expected to fly to Dubai on Wednesday to attend the Valima reception of the
son of one of his friends ...
<http://tribune.com.pk/story/319170/ruling-out-clash-zardari-warns-against-anti-govt-scheming/>
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President to depart for Dubai soon
Pakistan Observer
President's sudden visit to Dubai is being arranged amid high political
temperature and quick development being witnessed in the memogate case. It
may be mentioned here that President Asif Zardari had visited Dubai last
month and stayed there for about ...
<http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=134655>
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US says it wants negotiated settlement of memo issue
DAWN.com
WASHINGTON: Speculations that President Asif Ali Zardari may go to Dubai
again to ease political pressures on his government reached the US State
Department where spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the United States was in
no position to confirm or deny ...
<http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/10/us-says-it-wants-negotiated-settlement-of-memo-issue.html>
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Exiled former Pakistani president Musharraf to return, run for office despite ...
National Post
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is facing his biggest political crisis
since taking office in 2008, over an unsigned memo to the Pentagon seeking
US help to rein in Pakistan's generals, who have ruled the nation for more
than half its history. ...
<http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/01/09/exiled-former-pakistani-pm-musharraf-to-return-run-for-office-despite-dangers/>
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Pak-US ties need to be salvaged immediately, says Musharraf
The Express Tribune
Musharraf said he believed that the army would not move to take over power
from President Asif Ali Zardari. He said he had made a mistake by granting
amnesty to politicians and bureaucrats accused of corruption, embezzlement,
money laundering, murder, ...
<http://tribune.com.pk/story/319117/pak-us-ties-need-to-be-salvaged-immediately-says-musharraf/>
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>

Musharraf Promises Return to Pakistan, Pledges Political Comeback
International Business Times
I can, and I will, make Pakistan progress, strengthen its armed forces, and
fix the economy." Elections are not due in Pakistan until 2013. There is
speculation that Bhutto's widower, President Asif Ali Zardari, will call a
poll this year. ...
<http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/278908/20120109/musharraf-pakistan-president-political-comeback-return.htm>
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Pakistan Security Brief - January 9, 2012
Critical Threats Project
[15] In response to speculation that the military is trying to force him
out, Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari says that no one has asked for
his resignation and leaving office is not an option that he is considering.
Zardari is facing his biggest ...
<http://www.criticalthreats.org/pakistan-security-brief/pakistan-security-brief-january-9-2012>
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AfPak Daily brief: Dozens killed in bomb blast in Khyber
Foreign Policy (blog)
Pakistan's Supreme Court on Tuesday threatened to fire Prime Minister
Yousaf Raza Gilani if he did not implement the National Reconciliation
Ordinance (NRO) and re-open a Swiss corruption case filed against President
Asif Ali Zardari (AP, Dawn, ET). ...
<http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/01/10/daily_brief_dozens_killed_in_bomb_blast_in_khyber>
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2012-01-11T07:44:00.000-08:00

Naheed rebuts Zardari's statement
The Nation, Pakistan
She also said that the President was at that time in Dubai, and regretted
that he (Zardari) did not care to ask her what happened on that fateful
day. Spouse of Ms Naheed Khan and Pakistan People's Party Senator Safdar
Abbassi saw little seriousness on ...
<http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/islamabad/09-Jan-2012/naheed-rebuts-zardaris-statement>
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Why Musharraf is risking a return to Pakistan
Christian Science Monitor
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari is currently under pressure from the
military on allegations that he was responsible for a secret memo sent to
Washington seeking its help in preventing a coup, and is likely to go to
polls later this year according ...
<http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-South-Central/2012/0109/Why-Musharraf-is-risking-a-return-to-Pakistan>
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Zardari rules out resigning as Pakistan president
The National
Talk of Mr Zardari's possible resignation took on momentum when he suddenly
left Pakistan for a Dubai hospital in early December where he was treated
for as yet unspecified reasons. One of his close associates has said he had
suffered a "mini-stroke". ...
<http://www.thenational.ae/news/world/south-asia/zardari-rules-out-resigning-as-pakistan-president>
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WORLD BRIEFS
Newsday
PAKISTAN: Musharraf plans return Former President Pervez Musharraf
announced Sunday he would return to Pakistan later this month and prepare
for elections against the unpopular government of President Asif Ali
Zardari. His first challenge may be to ...
<http://www.newsday.com/news/world/world-briefs-1.3437838>
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Militants kill 10 soldiers in Pakistan
CBS News
While much remains unpredictable, commentators have speculated that the
army will not allow Musharraf to be arrested, setting up fresh conflict
between it and the unpopular government of President Asif Ali Zardari.
Musharraf told several thousand ...
<http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501712_162-57354907/militants-kill-10-soldiers-in-pakistan/>
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Zardari rules out quitting office
Khaleej Times
Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani said last week that he was
trying to narrow down differences between President Zardari and Sharif and
arrange a one-on-one meeting between the two leaders.
<http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2012/January/international_January281.xml&section=international&col=>
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Not leaving office: Zardari
Oman Tribune
ISLAMABAD President Asif Ali Zardari has said leaving office is not an
option and that no one has asked him to resign, responding to speculation
that the military wanted his departure. “No one has asked for it yet. If
someone does, I'll tell you,” ...
<http://www.omantribune.com/index.php?page=news&id=109508&heading=Pakistan>
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2012-01-11T07:43:00.000-08:00

President Zardari expert in blame game: Nahid Khan
The Nation, Pakistan
She said the President was at that time in Dubai, and regretted that he
(Zardari) did not care to ask her what happened on that fateful day.
President Zardari expert in blame game : Nahid Khan.
<http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/islamabad/08-Jan-2012/president-zardari-expert-in-blame-game-nahid-khan>
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Resignation no option: Zardari
The Nation, Pakistan
President Zardari said he and his children tried to stop Benazir Bhutto
from her return but she could not be convinced. “I have reached Baitullah
Mehsud but I won't put a full stop there, I want to move ahead. Condoleezza
Rice's (former US secretary of ...
<http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/08-Jan-2012/resignation-no-option-zardari>
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Awan tasked to highlight govt achievements
The Express Tribune
In addition, the information minister was censured by her colleagues in the
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) for not defending the government and President
Asif Ali Zardari during his recent medical trip to Dubai. Furthermore,
other media reports also ...
<http://tribune.com.pk/story/318330/awan-tasked-to-highlight-govt-achievements/>
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Musharraf Planning Return to Pakistan, Faces Arrest
Voice of America
Haqqani, who is a close ally of President Zardari, was forced to resign
over the matter. The existence of the document came to light in October,
when Pakistani-American businessman Mansoor Ijaz wrote a column in The
Financial Times accusing Haqqani of ...
<http://www.voanews.com/english/news/asia/Musharraf-Planning-Return-to-Pakistan-Faces-Arrest------136876448.html>
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Nawaz calls for immediate polls
Pakistan Daily Times
The PML-N president said he was unaware if Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab
Aslam Raisani had arranged any meeting between him and President Asif Ali
Zardari. He said Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani should take opposition
into confidence if there was ...
<http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2012%5C01%5C08%5Cstory_8-1-2012_pg1_1>
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PPP-UAE pays tribute to party founder
Gulf Today
He said today the present PPP government led by President Asif Ali Zardari
has been following in the footsteps of the party founder and have approved
18th and 19th Amendments in the constitution implemented by Shaheed Bhutto
in 1973 with the consensus ...
<http://gulftoday.ae/portal/7f823f86-2652-44ec-8b62-dac48ac76faf.aspx>
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Haqqani's wife lobbies in Washington for his safety in Pakistan
PakistanToday.com.pk
Farahnaz Ispahani, who is also a member of the National Assembly, was in
Dubai with President Asif Ali Zardari as his staff member when he was being
treated for his heart disease and went directly to the US from Dubai to
lobby for her husband's safety ...
<http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2012/01/haqqani%E2%80%99s-wife-lobbies-in-washington-for-his-safety-in-pakistan/>
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Acid rain for AAZ
Pakistan Observer
If it wasn't for the vibrant media, Zardari's government would have pushed
it under the carpet making it part of an untold history of Pakistan. But it
came out in open and as a result, the Supreme Court of Pakistan constituted
a judicial commission to ...
<http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=134372>
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2012-01-07T21:46:00.001-08:00

The figure fiasco

FBR tried to hoodwink both the international institutions and the public at home in presenting their revenue collection data

By Huzaima Bukhari and Dr. Ikramul Haq

It is sad that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has not learnt any lessons from earlier fiascos in over reporting tax collection figures — by taking funds in advance and blocking due refunds, besides taking credit of the same amount at various places. As a New Year ‘gift’, FBR informed the nation that it had provisionally collected Rs. 840.7 billion during July-December (2011-2012) as against Rs. 661.7 in the corresponding period of last year, reflecting an increase of 27.05 percent.

Once again, the exact amount of refunds due (but not paid) was not revealed so that actual net collection could have been ascertained. Similarly, the fact that major portion of collection of Rs. 201.7 billion during December 2011 included huge funds taken from taxpayers in advance — not relating to the period for which accounting is made — was deliberately concealed.

The categorical refutation of allegations of figure-fudging by the Chairman FBR on January 3, 2012 was a clever act of revealing half-truth. He was correct in claiming that there was no “over-reporting” and figures communicated were on the basis of fool-proof ‘cash reporting system’. However, he did not tell the real truth that in December many taxpayers were forced to pay advance tax due in March of January (in the case of banks) and undisputed refunds were blocked — the purpose was to make a wrong claim that target fixed for first half of the current fiscal year was met.

Only six months back, FBR high-ups claimed that revised target of Rs. 1588 billion was exceeded, calling it a “historic achievement”. However, it did not take long before the media exposed this claim and proved that through an act of fraud, FBR grabbed Rs. 43 billion from some big taxpayers, returning the amount by way of refunds within a few days. In reality, there was a huge shortfall of over Rs. 40 billion. Since FBR Chairman successfully avoided any punitive action, he continues with figure-fudging exercise for showing “wonderful results”.

The News in “Revenue target met through artificial figure” of 22 July 2011 claimed that “the revenue amounting to Rs. 1590 billion was not accumulated in the national exchequer till the night of June 30. The FBR had managed to secure about Rs. 43 billion from major banks and oil companies to show that the target was met. However, the amount was reimbursed in the first 10 days of July 2011...this was one of the reasons for resignation of Governor State Bank”.

FBR, in the wake of publication of the above story in The News tried to control the damage by feeding a statement to a newspaper which said that: “the net revenue collection of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for 2010-11 stood at Rs. 1550 billion against the annual target of Rs. 1588 billion, reflecting a shortfall of Rs. 38 billion.

Earlier, the figures of Rs. 1590.462 billion were the gross revenue collection of 2010-11. The final figures of net revenue collection as on July 22, 2011 were Rs. 1550 billion for 2010-11 against thrice downward revised target of Rs. 1588 billion, showing a shortfall of Rs. 38 billion. The net figures of Rs. 1550 billion have been computed and calculated after refund payments and reconciliation of data during the period under review”.

This was not the first time that FBR tried to hoodwink both the international lenders and public at home. Way back in 1999, tax bureaucrats inflicted shame on us by gross misreporting of data to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Subsequently, a commitment was made to the IMF to review fiscal data from financial year (FY) 1989-90 onwards. The data compiled for FY 1994 to FY 2000 confirmed that tax revenues were inflated by Rs. 5.2 billion.

The tax collectors showed higher tax collections through fudging figures and the nation had to pay a heavy cost for it (not only in terms of fine paid to the IMF) but by the embarrassment of a more tarnished image in the international community that nothing is transparent in this society.

Time and again, independent analysts and foreign institutions have expressed their indignation over this fraud. It is a serious matter that requires independent probe by the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance. But it has failed to hold any meaningful inquiry, let alone taking appropriate action.

Never ever does FBR disclose in its statements how much undisputed and established refunds are payable, which must be subtracted from the gross revenue receipts to record correct revenue collection. It only shows the actual refunds issued, whereas accrued and ascertainable liability of refunds should also be taken into account to reflect the true picture of net revenue realised during a financial year.

Such acts of deceit, manipulation, fraud and highhandedness by FBR testify to the criminal culpability of political masters as well. They want to show higher collection figures to foreign lenders, especially IMF, World Bank and Asian Development Bank to secure more funds for personal gains.

The latest effort to show 27 percent growth during the first six months of current fiscal year by “borrowing money” from taxpayers rather than collecting due taxes from the rich and mighty, is yet another shocking act. It is a sad reflection on our fiscal management. The data manipulators, as before, would escape accountability as they are reportedly backed by the political masters.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), in its annual report for 2010-11, estimated revenue deficit of 3.6 percent of GDP. The overall fiscal deficit was 6.6 percent of GDP. In order to meet monstrous fiscal deficit and give more money to badly-managed corporations running in losses, the government resorted to heavy borrowing — domestic and foreign. According to SBP “it has become a regular feature of Pakistan’s fiscal operations that at the time of the budget planning, quite an ambitious target is set for FBR tax collection: that is revised several times during the year and at the end of the year this target is also missed.”

The SBP’s report exposes “brilliant performers” of FBR, who should be taken to task for perpetual jugglery of figures. The top tax bureaucrats sitting in FBR always accuse lower level tax officials of corruption but what they themselves are doing is by no means less unpardonable.

False claims of “exceeding target” have exposed the credibility of the entire tax system. Such malpractice has distorted the image of the entire tax machinery — rendering the achievements of those who genuinely achieved their budget targets as doubtful. Since reporting of collection by FBR has lost its credibility and Auditor General, too, has failed to bring this before the Public Accounts Committee, it has become imperative for the Parliament’s Select Committee on Finance to order audit of FBR’s revenue collection system by independent auditors.

__________________________________________________

The writers, tax lawyers, are Adjunct Professors at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)

2012-01-07T21:22:00.001-08:00

Pak president Zardari says no 'war' with military
Hindustan Times
The opposition and intelligence chief want an independent inquiry. The
court probe puts fresh pressure on the president, who visited Dubai in
December over health fears, with most observers expecting early elections
sometime in 2012.
<http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/Pakistan/Pak-president-Zardari-says-no-war-with-military/Article1-792689.aspx>
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Pervez Musharraf to announce date for return to Pakistan
Telegraph.co.uk
As rumours of a coup gathered speed, Asif Zardari, the country's president,
has been forced to fly back to Pakistan from Dubai where he was receiving
treatment for "stroke-like symptoms". General Ashfaq Kayani, the head of
the Pakistan army, ...
<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/8998093/Pervez-Musharraf-to-announce-date-for-return-to-Pakistan.html>
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Punjab govt to contact SC on gas crisis: Shahbaz
The News International
Shahbaz Sharif said that the provincial government will soon go to the
Supreme Court over the prevailing gas crisis in Punjab and that no issue
will be discussed with President Zardari. The CM Punjab told that solid
waste management machinery will soon ...
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=30168&title=Punjab-govt-to-contact-SC-on-gas-crisis:-Shahbaz->
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Bilawal pays tribute to Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Associated Press of Pakistan
ISLAMABAD, Jan 6 (APP): Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal
Bhutto Zardari hosted an event marking the birthday of Quaid-e-Awam Shaheed
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in Dubai on Thursday. Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari and PPP
workers were present on the ...
<http://app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=173853&Itemid=2>
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England first for purged Pakistan as they take the first step on the long road ...
Telegraph.co.uk
Three months ago Pakistan's president Asif Zardari appointed a friend and
stalwart of the Pakistan People's Party, Zaka Ashraf. Ashraf was known not
for his interest in cricket, but in banking and — according to his
Facebook page – the production of ...
<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/international/pakistan/8998247/England-first-for-purged-Pakistan-as-they-take-the-first-step-on-the-long-road-to-redemption.html>
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Nawaz says leadership of Balochistan patriotic; says govt should heed to ...
South Asian News Agency
He said that Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed and no case was registered,
adding that President Zardari is sitting in Islamabad how he would take
action. Nawaz Sharif said that the hands behind the violence of Balochistan
would be unveiled in the ...
<http://www.sananews.net/english/2012/01/nawaz-says-leadership-of-balochistan-patriotic-says-govt-should-heed-to-masses-demand-for-early-elections/>
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Limelight on Political Changes, Risks in Major Asian Economies in 2012
International Business Times
What worsened the political uncertainty in Pakistan was the health
condition of President Asif Ali Zardari and his mysterious trip to Dubai to
get treatment, which triggered rumors about his stepping down. Leather
points out elections in Pakistan ...
<http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/278080/20120107/limelight-political-changes-risks-major-asian-economies.htm>
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Imaginary gardens…
The Nation, Pakistan
Just as HH and Zardari are within their rights to get a fair hearing for
their alleged crimes, so must Musharraf get a chance to defend himself when
he comes back. It is, perhaps, all those who advised and aided him during
his tenure at the Presidency ...
<http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/columns/07-Jan-2012/imaginary-gardens%E2%80%A6>
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Pakistan Security Brief - January 6, 2012
Critical Threats Project
[10] The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Core Committee, led by President
Asif Zardari, decided that Zardari has immunity from prosecution as
president under the Pakistani Constitution, and has therefore decided to
ignore a Supreme Court deadline to ...
<http://www.criticalthreats.org/pakistan-security-brief/pakistan-security-brief-january-6-2012>
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میمو کیس سوالات ، سپریم کورٹ اور جنرل جونز

2012-01-07T09:46:00.000-08:00

میمو کیس سوالات ، سپریم کورٹ اور جنرل جونز

2012-01-06T21:31:00.001-08:00

Brothers in arms?
South Asian News Agency
Both President Zardari and Mian Nawaz Sharif, however, have their own trust
problems and would like the interlocutor(s) to hammer out ironclad
guarantees before any such political settlement sees the light of day.
Stung by past broken promises, ...
<http://www.sananews.net/english/2012/01/brothers-in-arms/>
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The rally tally
The Friday Times
The president addressed his party supporters from behind bulletproof glass
at a rally marking the fourth barsi of his wife. It's the first time since
his return from Dubai that he's spoken to his subjects. I didn't make much
of the speech, ...
<http://www.thefridaytimes.com/beta2/tft/article.php?issue=20120106&page=13>
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Cooperation is only way forward: Tharoor
The News International
Tharoor welcomed the fact that President Zardari had been pushing for trade
links with India, because it reflected how important it was for Pakistan to
normalise relations with India. However, he said that the civilian
initiatives by Pakistan were ...
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=86100&Cat=2>
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Pagara taken to London by air ambulance
DAWN.com
The PPP leaders told reporters that President Asif Ali Zardari was in touch
with sons of Pir Pagara and had offered government`s assistance. At the top
of the dialog box, select the GENERAL tab. In the HOME PAGE text box, type
http://www.dawn.com, ...
<http://www.dawn.com/2012/01/06/pagara-taken-to-london-by-air-ambulance.html>
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Giles Clarke praises progress made by Pakistan chairman Zaka Ashraf
The Guardian
However, Butt's three-year term as chairman expired in October, and Clarke
has been encouraged by the early impact of Ashraf, a former banker with no
cricketing background – even if his appointment by the Pakistan president
Asif Ali Zardari, ...
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jan/05/giles-clarke-pakistan-zaka-ashraf?newsfeed=true>
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US senators extend support to Haqqani
The Nation, Pakistan
In a related development, sources said the former ambassador's wife and
presidential spokesperson Farahnaz Ispahani who had accompanied president
Zardari during his treatment in Dubai, had proceeded to Washington to
muster support for her beleaguered ...
<http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/international/06-Jan-2012/us-senators-extend-support-to-haqqani>
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2012-01-05T22:28:00.001-08:00

Acid rain for AAZ
PakTribune.com
After all, he is a known mega-opportunist and relentless survivor. With the
drops splashing around it is not difficult to presume AAZ would be getting
scalded by the acid rain in the end. President Zardari hits out at CJ
Iftikhar.
<http://paktribune.com/articles/Acid-rain-for-AAZ-242841.html>
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2012-01-05T22:15:00.000-08:00

Last updated: 37 mins ago

arly general election

Syed Irfan Raza | Front Page | From the Newspaper

(4 hours ago) Today

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani chairing a meeting of Federal Ministers and leaders of PPP at Aiwan-e-Sadr. —Online

ISLAMABAD: Amid speculations that the coalition government may be wrapped up or face a ‘big blow’ before Senate elections scheduled for March 11, the Pakistan People’s Party leadership decided on Thursday to hold them in mid-February, a senior party member told Dawn.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the PPP’s core committee, jointly presided over by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani at the Presidency.

Some private TV channels quoted the Federal Minister for Religious Affairs, Khursheed Shah, as saying that the next general election could be held any time after the presentation of budget in June.

A source in the PPP said President Zardari had called a meeting of all heads of coalition parties on Friday to take them into confidence on the decision taken by the core committee.

The party sources said the committee had reiterated its earlier decision of not writing a letter to Swiss authorities to reopen a money-laundering case against President Zardari.

Political observers see the move as an indication of a fresh confrontation between the government and the judiciary.

The Supreme Court had ordered the government to write the letter by Jan 10. Another significant decision taken by the committee was that President Zardari would not submit a statement before a judicial commission formed by the Supreme Court to investigate the memo issue.

The PPP leaders believe that the federation’s reply submitted to the court during the hearing on maintainability of petitions filed by PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and others in the memo case should be treated as a reply from the president.

“Under the Constitution we can hold Senate elections any time within one month before March 11,” Leader of the House in Senate Nayyar Bokhari told Dawn.

The Senate elections are held after every three years after the retirement of 50 per cent of its members. The term of a senator, however, is six years. Last elections were held on March 3, 2009 — nine days before the scheduled oath-taking of new members.

Article 224 of the Constitution says: “An election to fill seats in the Senate which are to become vacant on the expiration of the term of the members of the Senate shall be held not earlier than 30 days immediately preceding the day on which the vacancies are due to occur.”

The PPP leadership also decided to hold by-elections on seats recently vacated by legislators who had joined the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf.

“The meeting decided to hold by-elections on all vacant seats and complete legal formalities for the purpose at the earliest,” the president’s spokesman, Farhatullah Babar, said.

Former law minister Dr Babar Awan said: “The ruling party will stick to its previous stance that no case can be tried against the sitting president.”

The meeting decided to hold consultations with coalition partners on the issue of creation of new provinces and take legislative measures in parliament for Seraiki province in the light of consultations with coalition partners.

The sources said Pakistan Muslim League-Q leaders Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervez Elahi and Awami National Party chief Asfandyar Wali, who met the president separately after the core committee meeting, had endorsed the PPP decisions on creating new provinces and holding Senate polls in mid-February.

The meeting praised the cabinet’s decision to support a private member bill seeking to make it mandatory for all servants drawing salary from the public exchequer to declare and make public details of their assets in the same manner as the parliamentarians do.

“The meeting noted that in the past such initiatives were thwarted on flimsy grounds and decided to push through the proposed legislation with vigour and political determination,” Farhatullah Babar said.

He said the meeting had rejected a proposal by some political circles to set up military courts and termed it undemocratic, uncalled for and undermining of civil and democratic institutions. “The PPP will resist any such move.”

The prime minister briefed the meeting on the gas, electricity, sugar and fertiliser situation and said the government was giving top priority to domestic gas consumers and there would be no interruption in supply.

Mr Babar quoted the prime minister as saying: “Gas supplies to industry, cement, fertiliser and thermal power sectors will remain suspended during the current month because of an expected increase in consumption by domestic users.”

Mr Gilani said the cabinet committee had been asked to introduce reforms in the energy sector as early as possible and to take steps to reduce system losses by gas companies.

Mr Babar said a committee, headed by Petroleum Minister Dr Asim Hussain, had been asked to hold talks with stakeholders in Sindh to share some of the gas produced in the province with Punjab and submit its report.

The meeting decided to mobilise people and hold rallies and public meetings at divisional levels to be addressed by senior party leaders, including the prime minister.

It asked the president of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa PPP, Senator Sardar Ali to make preparation for holding a public meeting in tribal areas — the first of its kind by the PPP after Political Parties Order was extended to the region by President Zardari in August last year.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik briefed the meeting on the law and order situation.

The meeting was also attended by Nayyar Bokhari, Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani, Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo, Syed Khursheed Shah, Makhdoom Shahabuddin, Syed Naveed Qamar, Sherry Rehman, Faisal Raza Abidi, Sardar Ali, Nazar Gondal, Raja Pervez Ashraf, Rana Farooq Saeed Khan, Rukhsana Bangash, Fouzia Habib and Farhatullah Babar.

2012-01-05T02:40:00.000-08:00

Musharraf to meet Saudi King before planned return to Pak
Hindustan Times
A source close to Musharraf told the daily that he intends to get a "clear
message conveyed to President Zardari and army chief Gen Kayani" from the
US and Saudi Arabia that he should be allowed to pursue his political
goals. ...
<http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/Pakistan/Musharraf-to-meet-Saudi-King-before-planned-return-to-Pak/Article1-790998.aspx>
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A man for all seasons —By Harlan Ullman
Pakistan Daily Times
In the midst of this, President Asif Ali Zardari was felled by ill health
and medevaced to the American Hospital in Dubai. Rumours and innuendo
dominated fact and stories from a plot to oust the president to an effort
for him to leave the country ...
<http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2012%5C01%5C04%5Cstory_4-1-2012_pg3_11>
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RECORD OF THE WEEKLY PRESS BRIEFING ON 29 DECEMBER 2011
IEWY News
Q: President Zardari in his December 27 address has indicated some policy
shift towards Iran. Any comment? Has Pakistan accelerated Iran-Pakistan gas
pipeline? A: Our relations with Iran are special. There is no policy
change. ...
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